Introduction
Ansible Navigator is a command-line tool that provides a text-based user interface (TUI) for running and managing Ansible playbooks, inventories, and configurations efficiently.
🔹 Purpose of Ansible Navigator:
✅ Simplifies Ansible usage with an interactive interface.
✅ Improves debugging by displaying structured outputs.
✅ Manages Ansible collections & execution environments easily.
✅ Enhances playbook execution with real-time feedback.
It is especially useful when working with automation in containerized environments using Ansible Execution Environments (EE). 🚀
Requirements for Linux machine
- Either podman or Docker for Linux
- Internet access (during initial installation)
Step 1: Install Ansible-navigator , python
To install Ansible Navigator on Ubuntu, follow these steps:
Update Your System
sudo apt update
sudo apt upgrade -y
Install Python3 and Pip
Ansible Navigator requires Python 3.8 or later. Install Python and Pip if they are not already installed:
sudo apt install python3 python3-pip -y
sudo apt install python3.12-venv libonig-dev
Install Ansible Navigator
You can install Ansible Navigator using pip . It is recommended to install it in a virtual environment to avoid conflicts with other Python packages.
- Option 1: Install Globally If you want to install Ansible Navigator globally, run:
sudo pip3 install ansible-navigator
- Option 2: Install in a Virtual Environment
- Create a virtual environment:
python3 -m venv ansible3-env
- Activate the virtual environment:
source ansible-env/bin/activate
- Install Ansible Navigator:
pip3 install ansible-navigator
*Verify the Installation
After installation, verify that Ansible Navigator is installed correctly:
ansible-navigator --version
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Step 2: Install Podman
Ansible Navigator is designed to run Ansible inside a containerized execution environment rather than directly on the local machine.
Podman is used as the default container runtime for executing these Ansible Execution Environments (EE).
Reasons Why Podman is Required:
Runs Ansible in a Container → Ansible Navigator executes playbooks inside a controlled environment, avoiding dependency conflicts.
Rootless Execution → Unlike Docker, Podman allows running containers without root privileges, improving security.
Lightweight Alternative to Docker → Works without a background daemon, making it more efficient.
Red Hat & Ansible Integration → Red Hat promotes Podman for containerized Ansible execution.
Ansible Navigator may require additional dependencies like ansible-core or podman for certain features. Install them as needed:
sudo apt update && sudo apt install -y podman
Resources
https://podman.io/docs/installation
https://ansible.readthedocs.io/projects/navigator/installation/
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